Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1887-05-14
DAMAGE FROM THE FROST.

DAMAGE FROM THE FROST.
The damage from the frosts that have
occurred the present week is very heavy.
1t has been quite general in many parts of
Central and Northern California, and will
fall with extreme severity upon many fruit
growers. 1t is estimated that the reduction
in yield will be 200 carloads of grapes alone,
in the Sacramento and American river dis
tricts. The dispatches furnish a very dis
tressing view of the injury done. In some
cases, where fruit-growers have been de-
pending upon the approaching fruit crop
to carry them past finan cial trouble, and
especially if their outlook was in grapes,
the injury by the frost will be their ruin
How far this may be overcome from an
unexpected crop from second growth, of
course; cannot now be forecast, but those
best capable of judging do not anticipate
much relief from that source.
STRAWBERRY CULTURE.
The methods and industry of raising
strawberries was discussed at a late meet
ing of the American Horticultural Society,
as follows At GAINESVILLE. o., from which
come many of Chicago's finest strawberries,
the fields (for they ARE not patchesl of
strawberries are simply immense. This
land was formerly cultivated in tobacco A
few years ago the people abandoned to-
bacco-culture and went into the strawberry
business. The Sharpless is the leading
variety. They are planted and cultivated
in hills, all runners kept off. The ber-
ries are very large, and none but
IL -
heavy clay and thin, and is quite billy.
The chief fertilizer is stable manure. Their
markets are Detroit, Cleveland and Chicago
They allow no bad berries to go from
GAINESVILLE. In this way they keep up the
reputation of their berries. The day we
were there (the 10th of June) they shipped
twelve hundred bushels of berries The
people of GAINESVILLE have fully demon
strated what can be done on lands scarcely
fit to grow ordinary crops of wheat As
soon as the straw berry season begins all the
schools are dismissed and everybody, old
and young. goes into the strawberry field
and pick berries. They claim to pro-
duce an average of from one hundred and
twenty to one hundred and forty bushels
of straw berries to the acre.
In Mississippi we cultivated in matted
rigdes, which are thrown up by the plow
in preparing the land for the plants. AS
rule, one plantation lasts about five years.
The Wilson was formerly our chief berry,
but of late years the plant has become
somewhat feeble. This is especially true
after warm winter After q cold winter
the Wilson plant is still reasonably vigor-
Gus. The Crescent and Nunan are now the
leading Southern berries; the Nunan, es-
specially, succeeds better than any other in
the extreme South. Our crops range from
Our markets are north-principally Chicago
ST. Louis and Cincinnati. 1t is seldom we
find good market in New Orleans. We
ship in quart boxes, in twenty-four-quar
cases, and rarely have them reach market
in bad condition. The Cumberland is a
very fine berry in the South. The Sucker
State promises we'll We do not fertilize
our land to any great extent. Cotton-seed
bulls are used as mulch, also crab-grass
have sometimes used cotton-seed meal
and wood ashes as fertilizers. Considering
our locality, soil and distance TO market,
the Wilson still stands first in value, next
the Crescent, and third the Nunan, some
times called the Charleston"
CATARRH IN SPRING.
The Sheep Breeder and Wool GrOtcer calls
timely attention to the liability of sheep to
catarrh in the changeable season of early
spring, which every sheep man should
heed. 1t says: Z" In late winter and early
spring, it is no uncommon thing to find
sheep affected with catarrh, frequently OF
so malignant type as to cause fatal re-
suits. 1t is especially prevalent in wet and
open winters, and is aggravated by sudden
and extreme changes of temperature. The
animals affected show the first symptoms
of the disease by slight watery discharge
from the nostrils and eyes, and by loss of
appetite. Soon follows loss of appetite and
strength, while the discharges become
worse and are occasionally mixed with
blood The bowels of the sheep are also
likely to be infiamed and swollen, while
the droppings are tinged with blod. The
remedy recommends ed is thorough fumiga-
ton by burning roll birthstone in the apart
ments where the sheep are confined. The
sulphurous acid gas will cause the sheep to
sneeze and thus clear their nostrils. The
fumigation should be continued about
twenty minutes ct a time, morning and
night, for few days, care being taken to
have ample ventilation, as the gas is poi
sonous, and if inhaled in excess, must
prove fatal. To do the work properly and
successfully, the only implements neces-
sary are two iron kettles, one considerably
larger than the other. Put few shoyelfuls
of live hard wood Goals in the latter-char-
coal is better-and a skillet or old frying
pan, containing the birthstone, with an
old wooden blanket 10 throw over the Goals
when carrying to and from the sheep barn,
SO as to prevent any possibility of the
wind blowing sparks from the live embers
into the NOV. The supplement the above,
give laxative food to the sheep to keep their
bowels loose"
MATURING THE GRAPE.
The Government Committee In France.
after several years investigation of the
manuring of the grape and of results OF s
series of experiments with potash manures
report strongly against heterogeneous man
ures, including stable manures, as be-
ing more hurtful than useful" which
accords with common practice, also that
feeble grape vines consume as much
manure as vigorous vines. Potash
should enter into the composition Of
manures for grape vines, the elements in
the soil being generally IN bad condition
for assimilation; potash carries forward in
some way with it the other fertilizing prin-
cinles Potash from the root masses IN the